Tag: nwobhm

The band were taking some downtime when Women In Uniform was released having recently been on the road as Special Guests to Kiss on their Unmasked European tour. Its a cover version of a song by Australian band Skyhooks and is the only cover version Maiden have ever released as a single. – from the Iron Maiden website

Released on this day in 1980. For me the highlight is the b-side “Invasion”!! KILLER MAIDEN from the only era that matters…that’s RITE!!!!

It should’ve been so different for ANGEL WITCH… it took five years, at least one split, and a line-up change before their second album Screamin’ n’ Bleedin’ arrived on this day in 1985; released by Killerwatt Records.

Overall it’s a significant step down from their peak as one of the ultimate NWOBHM bands in ’80, but Waltz the Night is great with Kevin Heybourne on lead vocals!

Dark and dangerous!!! Following Welcome to Hell, released December 1981, VENOM released the Bloodlust c/w In Nomine Satanas 7″ on this day in 1982. The two-song single was recorded at Impulse Studios in Newcastle.

This 7″ is included as bonus tracks on later reissues of Welcome to Hell – we have this and many other VENOM albums on vinyl and CD and several patches!

In September Neat organised a video shoot to promote the band. They performed Bloodlust (see above) and Witching Hour. The promotional video tape “Live E.P.” (well not really) was sent out late 82/early 83, by then the second VENOM LP was already out… Black Metal…

Note: 24 August is given as the release date by some sources, others as 13 August.

RAVEN released their killer classic All for One during this month in 1983. One of England’s leading metal bands, All for One was their third album in three years, all great and all on Neat.

Megaforce released All for One in the USA and organised a US tour that August with METALLICA, who had released Kill ’em All a couple of days (25 July) before the start of the “Kill ’em All for One” tour (27 July – 3 September).

This Means War came out on this day in 83, an early Music for Nations release.

KAT’s classic 666 was featured at the end of May. Noce Szatana from that album bears a pretty striking similarity to TANK’s Just like Something from Hell from this album, their third. KAT did record Noce Szatana back in 84, but I think it’s fair to say the boys from London (by way of Surrey, Middlesbrough…) get credit for this one.Noce Szatana is not a copy though, they took a killer (new wave of) British heavy metal riff and turned it into a dark speed metal blast!

KAT – Noce Szatana (recorded a year or two before the 666 album, released as a b-side to Ostatni Tabor – their first release!)

Total force and energy first to last. In the US they’d be thrashcore/crossover, here they are NWOBHM punks, speed metal… VENOM / MOTORHEAD are the big comparisons with DISCHARGE/GBH etc, Cronos is co-producer on this record!

NWOBHM ’84 – November. Small run DIY release. This is the opening song from their only major release (the other being an ’84 demo), the EP Open Your Eyes. Dramatic, confident vocal performance by Billy Downs.

In early February the first three Demon albums will be re-released on vinyl by Rock Classics. All three will be double LPs with sides C and D reserved for bonus unreleased/remix/rare recordings. Demon played a style that bridged the hard rock of the 70’s and the NWOBHM movement of the 80’s. There are plenty of under appreciated bands of this era, and Demon are right up there!

Demon are still active, releasing music fairly consistently since 1980, although they were inactive for the majority of the 90’s. They play live and released Unbroken in 2012. Vocalist Dave Hill is the only original member in the current lineup.

Night of the Demon (1981)
The Unexpected Guest (1983)
The Plague (1983)